To Forget The Unforgettable

Chapter 2

A/N: Hey guys, hope you're enjoying it so far :)  

Ruth did as Teresa asked. She complied with WICKED's wishes. They taught her how to programme and use their software. To Ruth's surprise, she excelled at it. It was months before they actually told her what the software was for.

When they told her about the Maze Trials, Ruth had been gobsmacked. The whole thing seemed so elaborate, she was perplexed by how anyone could pull it off. But sure enough, WICKED had everything planned and were confident it would be a success.

She helped build both mazes and so became friends with Aris and Rachel, as well as Thomas and Teresa. She never saw someone from both pairs at the same time, nor was she allowed to mention them to the other pair. WICKED wanted them to stay as separate as possible. Ruth, as well as the WICKED staff, were the only bridge between the Groups.

It turned out Teresa was right. Ruth did see Beth sooner than expected. It wasn't in person, but rather through one of WICKED's many cameras. She knew about the whole of WICKED's computing systems, which meant tapping into camera feeds was a piece of cake.

She'd been working on how to programme the sky for the maze. They were in vast caverns, and the plan was to project hyper-realistic skies onto the ceilings. Aris and Rachel had managed theirs, but for some reason they couldn't get it to work in Group A's maze. This had frustrated Ruth to no end. She spent hours that day trying to solve it. The only way Dr Paige could get her out of the workroom was to give her a tablet where she could continue her progress in her bedroom.

Initially, that had been Ruth's only intention. But when she found herself alone with access to WICKED's database- she couldn't resist. It didn't take too long, WICKED mustn't have cared too much if their cameras were protected by such low security. She found the camera for Group B's barracks and opened it up.

Beth lay, huddled under blankets, on the top bunk of their bed where Ruth used to sleep. She zoomed the camera in and Ruth's heart squeezed as she watched her sister. Her expression was peaceful and calm but that didn't fool Ruth. The girl looked thinner and more tired than when she had seen her last. Ruth noted how tightly her fist clutched the blanket. Over the years, whenever Beth had a bad dream, she never woke up screaming or crying- their mother would get angry claiming she'd wake the Cranks. Instead, her fist would clench, crushing whatever object lay within her grasp. If she did wake up, it would be as quietly as if she woke up naturally in the morning. If Ruth asked what was wrong, Beth would gently assure her that everything was fine and go straight back to sleep. Or at least pretend she did.

Ruth now understood Newt, to some extent. Their world had changed since The Flare. Their current situation couldn't be helped given the circumstances, not if they wanted to find a cure. But even if Newt couldn't be with Sonya, and Ruth couldn't be with Beth... it was short-term. It was the price to pay for a happier life.

However, that didn't mean they weren't allowed to indulge.

Seeing their siblings, even from afar, was one of the few pleasures they had at WICKED.

Thoughts of the boy from Group A, led Ruth to find her way to a different camera. Group A's barracks were identical to Group B's. The only difference, Ruth spotted, was that Group A's barracks had three empty beds.

Her heart leapt in her chest. Where were they? She flicked through dozens of cameras, checking different corridors. Where had they gone? The images blurred together, one bland corridor after the next- WAIT!

She clicked back onto the last camera. There- there was a boy. A small boy, a few years younger than Ruth. He was sobbing, snot pouring from his nose.